I too have had some struggles with this concept. I now tend to think of "Basic", "Reinforced" and "Double" more in terms of an insulation strength as opposed to an actual material. For instance, "Double" insulation can be provided by a properly set and maintained distance through air, i.e no material at all. You could also call this a "Reinforced" insulation, since it is made up of one layer of air "reinforced" by more air.
Of course, there are certain rules that the standards apply if you do use an actual insulator to provide "Basic", "Reinforced" and/or "Double" insulation. These rules mostly dictate that: a. The insulation be strong enough to provide the required insulation strength. b. The insulation can withstand the temperatures to be expected in the product. c. The insulation is thick enough or constructed with enough layers to prevent an accidental breach from either a pinhole or a void. d. The insulation won't change its properties in the presence of humidity. (No plywood insulation!!! :-) ) e. The insulation won't wear off, crack, peel or abrade under reasonably foreseeable circumstances. What I'm saying is...call the insulation whatever you want. Just make sure that it works. Chris Maxwell | Design Engineer - Optical Division email chris.maxw...@nettest.com | dir +1 315 266 5128 | fax +1 315 797 8024 NetTest | 6 Rhoads Drive, Utica, NY 13502 | USA web www.nettest.com | tel +1 315 797 4449 | Chris Maxwell | Design Engineer - Optical Division email chris.maxw...@nettest.com | dir +1 315 266 5128 | fax +1 315 797 8024 NetTest | 6 Rhoads Drive, Utica, NY 13502 | USA web www.nettest.com | tel +1 315 797 4449 | ------------------------------------------- This message is from the IEEE EMC Society Product Safety Technical Committee emc-pstc discussion list. Visit our web site at: http://www.ewh.ieee.org/soc/emcs/pstc/ To cancel your subscription, send mail to: majord...@ieee.org with the single line: unsubscribe emc-pstc For help, send mail to the list administrators: Ron Pickard: emc-p...@hypercom.com Dave Heald: davehe...@attbi.com For policy questions, send mail to: Richard Nute: ri...@ieee.org Jim Bacher: j.bac...@ieee.org All emc-pstc postings are archived and searchable on the web at: http://ieeepstc.mindcruiser.com/ Click on "browse" and then "emc-pstc mailing list"